St. Cecilia Music Center

Wege recital hall with about 80 people and reception in the Dexter ballroom. Rental was from noon to midnight. The quotes in the initial meeting process were straight-forward with SCMC (I can't say that about other vendors who promised certain things were included then come to find out things cost extra in the contract! SCMC impressed us with their honest pricing process compared to competitors). It was so comfortable having the two changing suites with showers on site, with a lounge area for the wedding party. The coat room that looked like it was for concerts was very nice for the guests as well. The ballroom floor was awesome for dancing and had tons of space for the reception dinner. The building is so pretty as is, there was not much decoration needed. Overall, the location was easy to get to and accessible for our family members with elevator and small parking lot onsite. A+ loved this venue, will recommend it to others whenever I can.

and brought every single detail to life. She has next level communication, and I felt incredibly seen and heard throughout it all. 2) The venue itself is perfect - my husband and I received endless compliments regarding the beauty of St Cecilia. Because it was so naturally gorgeous, I didn't have to spend much time decorating at all - it was a dream to set up and take down. I could go on and on about how beautiful the space was. 3) On-site free parking! This was a HUGE benefit as I didnt have to ask my guests nor vendors to find on-street parking. 4) List of suggested caterers (we went with Distinctive) was helpful because it narrowed down our search initially. The day of the wedding, the caterers were incredibly familiar with the venue and knew exactly where to go - I wasn't asked a single logistics questions from the catering team. The Constructive Notes: 1) The contracted time for the venue is noon-midnight meaning you cannot get in any earlier than noon the day of your wedding. This was fine with me because I had minimal decorations and was incredibly organized and had my bridal party and some family friends help set up. If you are not a highly meticulous bride with agreed help for the day of, I would consider hiring a day-of coordinator to aid in the flow. My timeline included having hair and makeup done for the party at various times so we were not together during the getting ready because we were all setting up - if this is something that is important to you, I would definitely consider a coordinator to do all the work that myself and my party did. 2) Martha's Vineyard is the sole provider for a bar. If you would like a bar at your event, you must ensure that Martha's Vineyard is available and secured for your date PRIOR to even putting a deposit down on St Cecilia. This was difficult because Martha's Vineyard has less than stellar communication and often would only email back once every couple of weeks making it difficult to initially secure the bar prior to the venue. 2) The Wege Room was small for a ceremony space - the suggested max amount of people is 100 and I had just around 80 and it was FULL. It creates a very intimate setting for the ceremony, but there were moments that it seemed like we were on top of each other. Nadine was very helpful in setting up the space so we maxed out the space available, but I would not suggest it for parties over 80 people. We also had a string quartet on the stage. Overall, I would suggest this venue for smaller weddings - it was gorgeous and exactly what I envisioned for the day. The Knot is failing to upload any of my photos, but I can assure you they are amazing!

venue itself is truly elegant and beautiful, providing the perfect formal setting for our special day. They also provided my bridal party, and my grooms party each with a suite to get ready in. Nadine, the wedding coordinator, was incredibly helpful in keeping everything on schedule and organized behind the scenes. She provided a detailed packet to ensure all our vendors were aligned. We could not have asked for a better venue and team to bring our wedding vision to life. Highly recommend St. Cecilia Music Center!

ldn't recommend a better venue!

is accounted for. Her communication is top tier, making me feel almost *too* at ease throughout the whole process, especially since I was planning a wedding living across the state. Getting married in a historic music venue, having everything in one building, and not worrying about weather was a recipe for greatness! I could not recommend this space more for it's beauty, value, and staff. I felt like this place is a BARGAIN compared to other venues in the area with similar accommodations. Do not hesitate to get married here!!!!

d ornate, but modern enough for our taste. We just loved it and we both were glad with our choice.

bottom line. This was NOT our experience. Carla was so helpful from day one. She was laid back and knowledgeable about everything we had questions about. She was totally on top of our needs the entire time. I can't speak highly enough about her as a events manager. This venue wasn't my dream at first, but the more I walked around and saw the elegant beauty of the pianos and the architecture, it just started to feel perfect. As the year progressed and we got about 2 months away from our wedding date we were forced to make a decision to either go forward with 10 guests due to the indoor capacity restrictions, reschedule to a date in the future, or cancel our contract. They provided us with a Covid clause that allowed us to cancel our reservation for a FULL REFUND because it was Covid related. We got our check back and she was so sweet to wish us well and leave the option open to consider them for a 1 year anniversary reception someday. We are hoping to make this happen. I have no regrets and no stress associated with booking this venue. I trust them and would reccomend them to anyone who's on edge about good customer service. Thank you Carla and St Cecilia Music Center. We would have loved to work with you all the way up to the end.

ssible to plan anything during COVID-19, but Carla made sure we were always taken care of. I sincerely recommend this venue to anyone!!

n the day of. Carla, the event coordinator for St. Cecilia, was amazing and always so incredibly timely in her responses! I 1000% recommend this hidden gem as your reception venue!!

ia's helped us make the event seamless. They were very kind and helpful. And the location itself had so many possibilities for photos.

out of town, as well as traveling in for the day. There are many things to do in the Grand Rapids area and many places to stay. The ambience is fantastic - very classic and vintage feeling. We had our ceremony in the President’s Room and the reception in the Dexter Ballroom. Having both portions of our wedding celebration in one location was great and extremely convenient. The President’s Room provided an intimate ceremony experience and both rooms comfortably fit our approximately 100 guests. Our contact person at St. Cecilia’s was Carla and she was very informative and helpful throughout the process. The majority of our communication was via email as we are from Chicago and Carla was very prompt in her replies. She was also very accommodating and it was possible for us to stop in to view the venue whenever we were in Grand Rapids, even meeting with our DJ at the venue prior to the event. St. Cecilia’s provided an exceptional wedding experience at a very reasonable price!

is a fireplace (we stood in front of it) and a piano (available for use at no charge). They are really great about getting everything set up for you the day before in time for your rehearsals. Every other room is just as beautiful and unique, and also very affordable if you are on a budget.

ience was wonderful.

r big or smaller weddings. Carla, the event manager, was very helpful. As much as she could, she accomodates our requests, she make sure we have everything we need from them for our event. Overall, the place and services is great.